1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to power delivery, and more particularly, to the control and monitoring of backup power delivered to one or more loads.
2. Background Art
Office building tenants are increasingly sensitive to the quality and reliability of their electric power. Many are expanding their investment in and reliance upon sophisticated computer and telecommunications equipment and networks that are increasingly vulnerable to grid-related power fluctuations and outages. To retain existing tenants and to attract new ones, office building owners need to establish a new standard of service that delivers power with reliability and quality that effectively addresses these growing concerns.
One approach for providing such a standard of service involves installing onsite power generation equipment for backup power. When power is lost from the electric utility that normally provides power, the onsite power generation equipment can be activated as a backup system to provide power to the office tenants during the outage. Such systems can provide an efficient way for office property owners to provide the power, reliability, and quality that will keep their facilities state-of-the-art and a step ahead of their competition.
However, onsite power generators have limited power generation capability as compared to electric utilities, and can fail when suddenly having to supply a heavy current load, such as when being powered up after the loss of the primary power source. Such limitations increase a difficulty in managing the delivery of power from backup sources during loss of primary power.
Thus, what is needed are improved ways of managing the loss of a primary power supply, including improved ways of managing the delivery of backup power from a relatively limited backup resource, and of avoiding failure of the backup power generators during power up and other situations.